Cognitive Factors and Risk Management of Concurrent Product Realisation

In projects of development and industrialization of new products or to improvement of the existing ones not only quality and costs but also the time of product entering the market and delivery time to the client are important. This can be achieved by efficient project management, where classic methods of project management need to be upgraded by elements of concurrent engineering. In this chapter, a method for risk management in cyclically recurrent projects is demonstrated, in which conventional models of risk management based on an assessment of probability of risk event occurrence and an assessment of their consequences are supplemented by a third parameter—assessment of frequency of recurrence of risk events. An important advantage of the suggested solution lies in that a project manager and team members take into account cognitive factors, when managing recurrence of risk events which are usually due to poorly organized business processes of a company. A template was created in the Microsoft Project environment, by means of which the project team tested the suggested methodology on an example of concurrent realization of a pedal assembly of a car

Standard Project Risk Analysis Approach

Background: To stay competitive in a highly unpredictable market of today, companies must be able to manage project risks effectively. The basis for an effective risk management is a thorough risk analysis. Despite the availability of many different risk analysis approaches, companies can be reluctant to use them, since the models are usually complex and very time consuming. Objectives: The main objective is to present a simple, yet effective risk analysis approach that can also serve as a useful basis for resolving project risks. Methods/Approach: The proposed standard risk analysis approach is based on a standard risk model that deals with risk events and impacts separately and therefore allows for a separate planning of preventive and corrective measures. To classify risks and to represent them graphically, a risk map is used. Results: The use of the proposed approach is illustrated on a die-cast tool development project. The approach proved to be very simple to use and it served as a useful basis for resolving the identified risks. Conclusions: The main advantage of the proposed approach is its simplicity and clarity. It can also be used as a quick decision-making tool in a subsequent risk resolving process

Standard Risk Management Model for Infrastructure Projects

This paper outlines a risk management method that is based on the use of a standard risk management model and is adapted to the specific nature of infrastructure projects. The standard model can be used to identify and quantify unexpected events in planning and executing a project. The use of a risk map will also be illustrated. A risk map can serve to classify the identified and quantified risk events, depending on the expected loss, to critical risks that call for a more in-depth treatment, and non-critical risks that are normally not monitored, while no measures are foreseen in advance. A risk map is used to determine what the anticipated effects of the measures to mitigate the critical risks will be, and how the anticipated measures enable the transition from a critical risk to a non-critical risk. In this article, the suggested risk management is illustrated using the example of the erection of a reservoir for a hydroelectric power plant. The use of the proposed tools for the identification, assessment, prioritisation, and management of risks proved highly successful. With the use of the proposed risk model, the critical risk events were lowered under the acceptable level of the expected losses

Selection of the most suitable material handling system in production

When building a new company or optimising an existing one, material handling (MH) is often forgotten. Therefore, the paper presents a decision tree, on the basis of which it is possible to select the most suitable MH system by simulation depending on the selected production parameters. Such a simulation can greatly facilitate the selection of the most suitable MH system which will ensure minimal time consumption and still acceptable costs. To perform the simulation, a generalised production system model for 5 different MH systems was created in the FlexSim software, with which 32 different scenarios could be simulated depending on the selected production parameters, tested in a production facility of injection moulded components for the automotive industry. The data obtained from the simulations were then used to analyse the influence of the selected parameters on possible MH systems. For all potential scenarios, the solutions of which are acceptable for MH, a cost-benefit analysis was performed. Based on the analysis, a difference of 75 % between the most and least favourable scenarios was established

A max-plus algebra approach for generating a non-delay schedule

A Max-Plus algebra is one of the promising mathematical approaches that can be used for scheduling operations. It was already applied for the presentation of Johnson’s algorithm and for solving cyclic jobshop problems, but it had not yet been applied for non-delay schedules. In this article, max-plus algebra is used to formally present the generation of a non-delay schedule for the first time. We present a simple algorithm for generating matrices of starting and finishing times of operations, using max-plus algebra formalism. We apply the LRPT (Longest Remaining Processing Time) rule as the priority rule, and the SPT (Shortest Processing Time) rule as the tie-breaking rule. The algorithm is applicable for any other pair of priority rules with a few minor adjustments

Implementing concurrent engineering and QFD method to achieve realization of sustainable project

In this paper, we present the impact of concurrent engineering strategies, methods, and tools on product sustainability. Concurrent engineering can be used to achieve the primary goals of a product realization project: lower costs, shorter times, high quality, and increasing value. Currently, it is important that new products also meet product sustainability goals, such as economic, environmental, and social goals. The sustainability of a product can be influenced the most in the early stages of product development, so in this paper, we present a customized quality function deployment (QFD) method called the house of sustainability, which translates sustainability requirements into technical solutions for a product. A seven-step process for implementing a sustainable product realization project is also proposed, in which the house of sustainability is one of the most important tools. The proposed process is illustrated with an example of a concurrent product realization project in engineering to order production